Ratchet-wrench



(No Model.)

L. BRYANT.

RATGHET WRBNGH.

NITED STATES PATENT Grricn.

LUTHER BRYANT, OF MAPLE GROVE, MAINE.

RATCHET-WRENCH.

.fe-'FE CIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 372,654, date November 8, 1887.

Application filcd June 3, 1887. Serial No. 240,159.

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, LUTHER BRYANT, a citizeu of the 'United States, residing` at Maple Grove, in the county of Aroostook and State of Maine, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Ratchet'Vrenches, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in ratchet-wrenehes; and it consists in a certain novel construction and arrangement of parts for service, fully set forth hereinafter, and specificallypointed outinthe appended claims.

In the drawings hereto anueXed, Figure l is a side view of the wreneh. Fig. 2isalongitudinal section thereof. Fig. 3 is atransverse section on the line x x of Fig'. 2. Fig. 4 is a detail view of the collar. Fig. 5 is a detail view of the pivoted pawl attached to'the link which operates on thejaws.

Referring to the drawings, in which similar letters denote corresponding,` parts in all the figures, A designates the shank of the wrench, having the handle B on the lower end, and the upper end is bifurcated to provide the ears A' A', having the slot a therebetween, and the said cars are extended to form the collars A2 A2. Through thealigned openings in the said collars passes the shaft G, having the disk D thereon to operate in the space between the said collars, and having ratchet-teeth on its periphery, for a purpose hereinafter explained. The said shaft is extended on one side of the shank to form the upper or rigid jaw, E, of the wrench, the said jaw having a longitudinal slot, e, therein.

F is the Inovable jaw, having' a plate or tongue, f, on the upper side pivoted in the slot e in the rigid jaw. Aleafspring, G, is seeured on the upper side of the rigid jaw and'adapted to operate at the free end in the slot e to actuate the movable jaw and normally hold it away from the rigid jaw.

H designates a swinging` link, the lateral arms lt of which are pivoted on opposite sides of the rigid jaw, and between the lower or free ends of the said arms is pivoted the pawl I, which is provided on the under sidewith the teeth and I'is a thunib-hold or handle formed thereon, to enable the said pawl to be raised to disengage it.

The lower side of the rear portion of the lower jaw is segment-al in Outline, and is pro (No model.)

vided with ratchetteeth to be engaged by the above-mentioned pawl I. It will be scen that by swinging the lower end of the link H rearwardly the lower jaw is raised, and as the pawl I engages with the ratchet-teeth at any point, any desired adjustment of the lower jaw may be made to have the desired distance between the jaws. To close the jaws it is merely necessary to draw the lower or free end of the link rearwardly, the teeth 011 the lower side of the pawl sliding over the teeth of the scginental ratchet; and to open the said jaws raise the handle or thumb-hold of the pawl, and the teeth are disengaged and the lower jaw is free to be moved; As the spring G normally prcsses downwardly on the said lower jaw, it will be seen that when the handle of the pawl I is moved the said jaw will be thrown down. The opposite end of the shaft is hollowed out to form a sleeve, k, and in the said sleeve is secured'the ha11drestK,to enable the operator to hold the jaws of the wrench in close contact with the nut to which they are applied.

L L designate pivoted spring pawl-levers Operating in the slot a in the upper end of the shank and adapted to nornially engage in the ratchet D. The said pawl-levers are adapted, when the lowereuds thereof are pressed upon, to be lifted out of engagement with the said ratchet.

M designates a collar Operating on the upper end of the shank below the lower ends of the pawls L, and on the upper edge of the said collar is formed a segmental flange, N, which extends not quite onehalf the distance around the collar, and the inner side of the said i'lange, at the ends thereof, is slightly beveled to en able the fiange to slide over and dcpress the lower ends of the said pawls and lift the same from engagement with the ratchet.

The flange, as before stated, does not extend quite half-way around the collar, and conse quently only one of the pawls can be lifted at one time, thus enabling the handle to be turned in one direction. When the -other pawl is lifted, thehandle may be turned in the opposite direction. Also, the collar maybe so disposed as not to lift either pawl, and then the handle will be loeked in both directions, as will be readily seen.

I am aware that it is not new to provide a IOO wrench with a ratchet and handle having a pawl thereon to enable the same to be turned in either direction, and I do not claim this broadly.

I am further aware that it is not new to provide a wrench with a hinged or pivoted movable jaw, and I do not claim it. The peeuliar arrangement and combination of the parts as herein shown and described are, howe'ver, new, and are extremely simple and effective in operation.

The operation of the wizench is well known to those skilled in the art to which it pertains, and a detailed description thereofneed not be here given.

Having now described the construction, operation, and advantages of myinventiomwhat I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is-

1. In a wrench, the combination of the handle A, collars A2A2 011 the upperend thereof, the shaft O, mounted in the said collars and extended on one side thereofto form the rigid jawE and on the other side to form the socket or sleeve k, thehandrestK, secured in the said socket, movable jaw F, pivoted to the rigid jaw, the spring G, to hold the jaws normally open, and means, snbstantially as deseribed, to close the jaws, snbstantially as specified.

2. The combination of the shank A, parallel collars A2 on the upper end thereof, shaft opera-tin g in the openingsin the said collars, disk D between the collars and having ratchetf teeth thereon, spring pawls to engage the teeth, sleeve 7a on one end of the shaft, handrest K therein, upper jaw, E, formed on the other end of the shaft, havinga slot, e, therein, movable jaw F, having a tongue or plate,f, pivoted within the said slot, toothed segment on the said lowerjaw, link H, pivoted to the rigid jaw, and having a pivoted pawl to engage in the ratchet-teeth in the lowerjaw,and the spring G, to actuate the movable jaw, all constructed and arranged substantially as and 'for the pnrpose set forth.

3. A wreneh having the rigid jaw E, movable jaw F, pivoted thereto and having a toothed segment thereon, link H, pivoted to the rigidjaw, pivotedpawl I in t'he free end of the said link, having teeth to engage in the said toothed segment, thumb-hold l' on the said pawl, to enable the same to be raised, and the spring` G, to normally hold the jaws separated, all constructed and arrangedfisubstantiallyas and for the pnrpose-set forth.

Intestirnony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed Iny signature in presence of two witnesses.

LUTHER BRYANT.

W'itnesses:

F., M. STIMsoN, D. A. I-InwET'r. 

